The propeller of a torpedo is subjected to axial thrust loads due to water pressure and the thrust load generated by its own rotation. Most typically, this thrust load is reacted through a bearing to the hull structure. Consequently, the bearing must be of sufficient size to transmit the entirety of the thrust loading. The use of a large bearing is costly and undesirable from that standpoint.
Furthermore, the bearing may provide a path for the transmission of noise from the propeller via the hull structure to the water in which the torpedo was running. Such noise is obviously undesirable in that it facilitates in detection of the torpedo. It is thought that the degree of noise transmission from the propeller to the water via the hull may be reduced by some degree by reducing the thrust load on the bearing.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the above problems.